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Archive for August, 2011

Do you ever find yourself looking at the words ‘South Africa’? And when you see them, do you find yourself poorly translating them into French in your head? And then singing them to the tune of Rick James’ ‘Super Freak’? It can’t just be me can it?

Over the past couple of months I’d repeatedly concluded that I was spending too much time lurking. Not round corners or under people’s beds – frankly I’m still not doing nearly enough of that. No, my lurking time was being consumed observing a messageboard that many have claimed contained my subconcious. It didn’t, but it wasn’t far off. I won’t go into how long I think I was spending, passively reading the opinions of strangers, but it was becoming an amount I was uncomfortable with. Many years ago I vowed that I would never sign up and become a member of their community as that investment of even more time would leave me with barely enough minutes to shower on an average day. Instead I carried on watching them bicker, debate, run round in circles and, on occasion make an interesting observation or link to something that would be of use or interest to me. It was that last factor that kept me coming back, anthropological fascination aside. But the links had been getting sparser, the new information more sporadic, the posters less informed than I was thanks to the knowledge I’d built up after almost a decade of eavesdropping. A time was coming when I’d have to sever the cord that held me to them, if only so I could get some of my future back. But it was going to be hard. That ingrained a habit, almost a addiction, was always going to be hard to kick. Except it wasn’t. The choice was taken away from me. The forums have been hidden behind a wall so tall that only those who have registered with the sight are able to see over it. Being a man of my word (well, most of the time anyway) and one not too keen to feature on any registers, I will not be signing up. And thus my days are almost free once more.